DARK QUEST (Sample)

Chapter One

The moon was high in the sky. Lazy crawling clouds travelling across it very slowly. There was an eerie cry of something emerging from the dark. A big owl swooshed by in great brown wings, its round yellow eyes scanning the forest below for any sort of available prey.

Suddenly, it flew into a great tree and perched heavily. The branch it perched on shook slightly showering down some helpless leaves due to the night bird's weight.

There was a snap of twig and the rustle of dry leaves. A dim glow came into view, swaying gently from the movement of its bearer. Jason Lockwood cursed silently as the tiny branch of an overgrown weed got caught in his hair.

He pulled at the end that had gotten stuck and succeeded in ripping free the branch but losing some of his hair to it. Jason Lockwood, the son of the Mayor who ruled and maintained the hamlet now wandered in the forest in the middle of the night, holding his lamp, with one of his suspenders on his shoulders while the other hung loosely down the side of his thigh.

He was nothing but a fine young promising man of nineteen, admired by all, especially by the female sex but what a pity that he had to give his heart to just one special girl
...Davina!

Davina, that was why he was in this god-forsaken forest. She had suggested they meet at night in the woods but she never gave a real reason for her choosing the woods as a meeting point or why they had to meet tonight.

She only put him into suspense by telling him that she had a surprise for him, and that heart-melting smile of hers accompanied with her words had always had him submissive and he had willingly succumb to meet her in the woods even though he knew that he shouldn't be seeing her.

Times without number, his father had warned and scared him away from Davina but he never told him why.

Till date, he still had no idea where Davina lived or what hamlet she came from. Though he had stumbled upon her by chance when he was out hunting in the woods by sundown and ever since then, they had been friends and then lovers.

What had really attracted him to her was her charming smile, her pale skin as if she had been devoid of sunlight and her lovely voice when she sang for she seemed to know every song, even those dated back to the 15th century.

He still couldn't get the thought of their first kiss out of his mind and the way she moaned when he caressed and kissed the swells of her breasts. She was such a beauty and so delicate at the age of eighteen, so full of life but there was just one more thing he craved for... to feel her lovely pale skin against his, to touch and do everything a man could ever dream of doing to a woman.

He smiled at the thought of it. Maybe, that was it...of course, that must be the surprise she had for him, what more could she possibly want to surprise him with. His heart swelled with joy of anticipation so.

At last, he was sure going to make love to Davina. He noticed he was getting hard at the thought of exploring her delicate body in his imagination. Quickly, he clasped his hand over his groin and continued through the forest. Isn't much far now...he thought. He would do what they needed to do privately here and return home before anyone even noticed his absence from his bed.

He gasped, coming to a stop at the sound of a distant howling of a lone wolf. Panting, he knew he needed to get away as soon as possible. He wasn't going to be dinner to some bloody hairy carnivore. Hurrying his steps, he made his way through the noisy forest, the lamp helping him find the path in the bush, the roar of a waterfall nearby could be heard.

He slapped at his neck killing the blood sucking bug that had perched there for a drink. Soon he burst into an open clearing of low grass. He glanced back to see if he had been followed by any one or predator but nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary.

Sighing in relief, he took some steps forward, still panting. He took a few deep breaths and exhaled sharply. He scanned the open space of grass for any feminine silhouette of Davina but found none.

Where was she? She was supposed to be here, this was where she had asked him to meet her, in the clearing by the falls that leads to the river. He glanced at the slow moving water, maybe she was having a bath for she loved to have a dip or two once in a while. He walked down to the bank and peered into the dark water, nothing!...peaceful!...just ripples caused by fishes which came up once in a while for a drink or gulp of fresh air.

He could see clearly through the clear bright light the moon showered the earth but she still was no where to be found.

"Hellooo..." a soft whisper came from behind, startling him. He gasped and spurn around, losing his grip on his lamp in fear.

"Gosh, Davina!" He almost yelled, bending to pick up the lamp. "How many times do I have to tell you never to sneak up on me again? You just scared the shit out of me."

She smiled, biting softly on her lower lip...her finger tangled in the lock of long dark hair flowing down her shoulder. "Scardy cat!" she teased mockingly.

He sighed. "You are late!" he said, gathering his courage now he was no longer alone, he always felt safe with her for reasons he couldn't quite explain. He wondered how she coped out here alone without fear.

"Sorry!" she cooed and eyed him. He was just noticing her dress. That same swell of breasts cupped tightly in her clothes. Her black hair was like a dark halo around her face and she was extremely beautiful tonight.

"Missed me?" she asked, closing the gap between them, staring into his eyes.

He smiled, drawing closer as he set the lamp down. He took her hand and planted a kiss in her soft palm.

"Always." he replied. She pushed up on her toes and softly kissed him on the lips, when she withdrew, his closed eyes slowly fluttered open and stared into hers.

"Why won't you come live in the hamlet with us? Why do prefer to stay out her... in the woods... I mean... it's dangerous, Davina!"

She smiled at his deep concern for her wellbeing. "...You got nothing to worry about Jason... and besides, I can take care of myself..." she pressed her chest into his, her hand sliding up to cup his face. She gave it a slow caress and whispered. "At nineteen...you are so full of youthfulness Jason Lockwood..." she gave his lower lip a single flick of her cold tongue which wasn't unusual to him.

The urge to kiss her again, suddenly surged through him. "...and you..." he began. "...will spend my youthfulness with me, Davina."

Her mouth moved and she laughed softly, gently pulling away and turning her back to him, still laughing.

He didn't know the cause of her laughter and he was confused. "Why do you laugh?"

"...because..." She turned around to face him. "...you are a callow youth my love."

He was more confused. He raised an inquisitive eyebrow and stepped forward eagerly. "We could get married?" he suggested.

She stared at him for a while. "...and Mayor Lockwood?"

"Leave my Father out of this, Davina!" He snapped.

She began walking slowly around him with each word escaping her mouth. "Hubert Timothy Lockwood... born 1859...schooled in Nitbridge school and relocated down to this little hamlet to become Mayor."

Without turning, he asked over his shoulder. "How come you know so much about my father?"

She stopped beside him and replied. "...time and age, my love..." she whispered again "time and age..."

"Age?" he stammered as he watched her walk away from him towards the river bank, the wind blowing through his hair.

"Your father will never let us marry, Jason Lockwood." She uttered "He won't, especially not his first son." she said softly.

"Then we will elope together!" he stated.

"You are too young for such, my love..." she walked up to him. "You have a great future ahead of you Jason... that's why I have come to offer you an invaluable gift."